North Texans observe 9/11 with pomp and pageantry

Share this:

NEW YORK, NY -- On a gloomy Tuesday morning, North Texans joined the rest of the nation to remember 9/11.

In pomp and pageantry, the Prosper Fire Department rolled out the bagpipes during a solemn service at the newly opened town hall. Marking the 17th anniversary of the terror attacks, Fire Chief Ronnie Tucker vowed never to forget.

"It is my hope that in the months and years ahead, life will return to almost normal," said Tucker at the podium. "We`ll go back to our lives and routines, and that is good. Even grief recedes with time and grace, but our resolve must not pass. Each of us will remember what happened that day, and to whom it happened. We will remember the moment the news came, where we were and what we were doing."

A similar ceremony got underway at Dallas Fire Rescue.

The observation at the Grapevine Fire Department included a flag unveiling ceremony.

Over a the Fort Worth Independent School District (FWISD), a memorial display was set up in the lobby at the Junior Reserve Officer Training Corps (JROTC).

"Today, 17 years later after that day, we will remember it through a day of service," Lt. Col. Richard Crossley Jr. said. "Throughout the country, we see the vitality, creative energy, the fundamental decency, the tolerance and good-heartedness of the American people. We are unbroken."

President Gerald Turner of the Southern Methodist University in Dallas, told students many of them were too young to understand the terror events when they happened.

"This particular time, after 17 years, these students here now, first year students, were one year old, and so it`s very important for us to have these kinds of activities to remind them the reason the world is in such turmoil and risk, that there are those who would really like to destroy the freedom we have, and that we simply can`t allow that to happen."

President Trump and First Lady Melania visited the field near Shanksville, Pennsylvania where a new 'Tower of Voices' monument was erected.

"We are here to pay solemn tribute to the 40 passengers and crew members on Flight 93 who rose up, defied the enemy, took control of their destiny, and changed the course of history," the President said in his opening remarks. "Today, we mourn their loss, we share their story, and we commemorate their incredible valor."

In New York City, mourners gathered at Ground Zero.

The Al-Qaeda terror attacks in NYC, at the Pentagon in Arlington, Virginia and in Shanksville, Pennsylvania claimed nearly 3000 lives.